Reference is made to commonly assigned co-pending patent application Docket No. E-785 filed herewith entitled xe2x80x9cMethod And Apparatus For Detecting Misuse Of A Postal Indiciaxe2x80x9d in the names of Ronald P. Sansone and Robert A. Law, Jr.; and Docket No. E-853 filed herewith entitled xe2x80x9cA System For Capturing information From A Postal Indicia Producing Device So As To Correct Improperly Paid Mail Piecesxe2x80x9d in the names of Ronald P. Sansone and Robert A. Law, Jr.
The invention relates generally to the field of postage devices and more particularly to the obtaining of the payment of value added taxes for mail pieces and the refund for value added taxes that did not have to be affixed to mail pieces.
Taxes are compulsory payments by persons or organizations to the government. Even though governments receive payments from other sources such as publicly owned electric power facilities or the sale of timber from public lands, reparations, or from gifts, taxes are the most important source of government revenue. The revenue collected is used by the government to support itself and to provide public services.
Economic activity, in a modern market economy, is varied and complex and governments have exercised great ingenuity in devising instrumentality""s of taxation to match the complexities. As a result there is no simplified classification of taxes that is considered satisfactory for all purposes.
One type of tax used by many governments is a value added tax. A value added tax (VAT) is a tax based on the difference between the cost of materials and other expenses involved in the manufacture of a product and the ultimate value of the finished article. The tax is imposed at various stages in the production process and thus tends to spread the tax burden among several firms. It is an accurate gauge of an industry""s importance because it managers a firm""s contribution to the economy rather than its gross sales. In operation, the tax is applied at a fixed rate of the value of a product after all costs of manufacture are deducted.
The value added tax (VAT) was instituted in France during 1954 and since then has been adopted by Germany, Italy and other western European countries. Currently, some countries have a value added tax that is applied for postal services, i.e. the use of stamps, the use of postal indicia, postal insurance, trace mail, Cash On Delivery, postage meter refills, next day letters, etc. The tax is applied selectively, for instance in some countries the tax is due on letters and not on parcels and in other countries the tax is due on parcels and not on letters. Thus, there is no universality in the taxation of value added taxes due on letters and parcels.
During 1991, Canada instituted a value added tax that the Canadians call the Goods And Services Tax (GST). All postal rates and rates for additional services, except money Order fees are subject to the 7% federal GST and to the Provincial Sales Tax where applicable. Canadian Indians and Provincial governments are exempt from paying the GST. Mail addressed to foreign destinations requiring total shipping charges of $5.00 or more (single item or a cumulative purchase) and products ordered from and shipped directly by Canadian Post to a foreign destination, such as Philatelic and Retail products, are not subject to the GST.
The person or entity who authorized the sending of the mail piece rather than the mass mailer who prepared the mail piece is liable for the payment of the value added tax. If an excess amount of value added tax is paid government forms must be completed to recollect an overpayment. Many countries also require a party to maintain a record of the postage that has been applied to the mail piece and the amount of value added tax that is included in the postage. Thus, a complex and time consuming effort is required to obtain a refund for the over payment of excess postal value added taxes.
The present invention overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art by providing a system for maintaining a record of the postage that has been applied to a mail piece and the characteristics of the mail piece and the contents of the mail piece that identify the amount of value added tax that is included in the postage. The value added tax mail monitoring system includes: a plurality of mailers digital units that stores unique information contained in a postal indicia affixed to mail, wherein the unique information includes the amount of value added tax paid for each piece of mail; a plurality of postal units that reads and stores the unique information contained in the postal indicia; and a data center that receives information stored by the mailers units and the unique information read by the postal units to determine if a proper amount of value added tax has been paid for servicing and handling the mail.